One of my good friends is planning to buy a new plasma unit in near future. He is looking for a 50" fully loaded plasma unit for under $1200. Lots of brands and choices are available in the market to choose from. I suggested him a Pioneer unit but he want to look at other brands also.

Even though Pioneer stopped making plasma HDTV's, there are still some out there. However, they are much more expensive than $1,200. They are over $3,000. Panasonic would be the best bet at the $1,200 price range.

The full 1080p 50 inch Pioneer KRP-500M is still being made but it is a "monitor" only (no TV tuner).
It sells for around $1,500 if you shop around.

Panasonic offers the Viera P50S1, P50G10 and P50G15 for around that price range. All 3 use Panasonics newest Neo-PDP display technology and they differ only by "extra" features. (only difference between the G10 and G15 is that the G15 is thinner)

Samsung offers the PN50B550 and PN50B650 (note, the "B" is this years model, and "A" would be last years models). Both use the latest Samsung plasma display technology and they differ also by "extra" features.

The full 1080p 50 inch Pioneer KRP-500M is still being made but it is a "monitor" only (no TV tuner).
It sells for around $1,500 if you shop around.

Panasonic offers the Viera P50S1, P50G10 and P50G15 for around that price range. All 3 use Panasonics newest Neo-PDP display technology and they differ only by "extra" features. (only difference between the G10 and G15 is that the G15 is thinner)

Samsung offers the PN50B550 and PN50B650 (note, the "B" is this years model, and "A" would be last years models). Both use the latest Samsung plasma display technology and they differ also by "extra" features.

Sorry to inform you that PIONEER no longer makes any TV's or video monitors. They are and have been out of that business.

__________________Anthem, Conrad Johnson, Dish Network/JVC, Dynaudio, Infinity, Integra, JL Audio, Klipsch, Magnepan, Marantz, Martin Logan, Onkyo, Oppo, Outlaw Audio, Panasonic, Paradigm, REL, Sumiko, SVSound, and Toshiba are the brands equipment I currently use. I have owned/used and tested equipment made by just about any manufacturer you can name.